1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of protective helmets, and in particular, to a new and useful device for releasable attachment of a faceguard to a helmet shell.
2. Background of the Invention
In many sports, it is desirable for participants to wear a helmet shell to protect against head injury as a result of collisions. This is particularly the case in youth sports. It may also be desirable to protect the face by providing a generally cage-like faceguard across the front of the helmet shell. This provides frontal protection while retaining substantial frontal visibility. Such combinations of helmet shells and faceguards may be used in a number of sports, including football, lacrosse, baseball, fast-pitch softball, hockey, and the like.
In the event of injury, the faceguard may impede the ability of medical personnel to render assistance, as they will be unable to directly access the injured player's face to conduct tests and render treatment with the helmet shell and faceguard in place. The presence of a faceguard may also make it difficult to administer emergency aid such as, for example, mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. While access to the player's face may be achieved by removing the entire helmet shell with the faceguard attached, such removal may be undesirable in the event of a suspected brain or spinal injury. When such injuries are suspected, the general recommendation is to minimize head and neck movement. To avoid moving the player's head under such conditions, it may be necessary to remove the faceguard from the helmet shell prior to administering treatment. However, such removal tends to be relatively time-consuming and, in an emergency situation, complex. Thus, there is a need for a faceguard attachment system which permits rapid displacement of the faceguard without requiring removal of the entire helmet shell.
U.S. publication no. 2012/0011686 by Duong attempts to address these issues by teaching clips for securing a face mask to an article of head gear, and for releasing the face mask without the need for any special tools or equipment. The reference teaches that the clip may comprise a base and a retaining member that is pivotably coupled to the base. When the retaining member is engaged with the base, structure on the base prevents the retaining member from pivoting open, thus securing the face mask within the clip. To disengage the retaining member and release the face mask from the clip, a user may squeeze or flex a portion of the base, which causes the retaining member to disengage and pivot open.
Among other things, the reference fails to teach a shock stabilizer, or any other piece made of a material softer than the base or retaining member. Thus, upon impact there is no “give” in the device and such is important for allowing for effective absorption of impact.
U.S. publication no. 2010/0251464 by Parisi also attempts to address the problem. The reference teaches an attachment system for operative connection of a faceguard to a helmet shell with the faceguard being held within a selectively releasable clamp operatively secured to the helmet shell. The attachment system includes a compressible spring clip held in overlying relation to the helmet shell. The spring clip is adapted to selectively clamp a bridge member of the faceguard. A selectively engageable latch structure holds the spring clip in the closed condition. Upon release of the latch structure, the spring clip is urged to the open condition, such that the faceguard may be rotated away from a user's face.
This device relies on a locking-arm-and-latch structure. The locking arm includes an angled head having a half arrowhead profile adapted for receipt through an acceptance slot (see FIG. 5). Impact of sufficient force can cause the locking arm to break and/or fail. The reliance on this structure, thus, presents a significant safety issue, as the faceguard may then fall off during play.
Thus, a need remains for further advancements in the field of helmet design, in particular for a face guard securing device which provides optimal securement of the face guard to the helmet, but which can be quickly and easily released.